Last mission to repair the Hubble telescopeHubble space telescope discoveries have enriched our understanding of the cosmos. In this special report, you will see facts about the Hubble space telescope, discoveries it has made and what the last mission's goals are.

For their own goodFifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.

Confederate flag on tag seeks backer

But opposition to the plate comes swiftly.

For some, the Confederate battle flag is a symbol of the country’s racist past, of a viewpoint best forgotten.

But a group who cherishes the old flag as a point of Southern pride is working to do just the opposite.

The Sons of Confederate Veterans want to immortalize the flag on a Florida speciality license plate.

The group’s leaders say they have collected 30,000 signatures from people who would buy the plate. They’ve also raised the $60,000 deposit needed to put the proposal before the state Legislature.

Getting it approved this year would be especially appropriate, they say, because it is the 200th anniversary of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee’s birthday.

The group knows the plate will evoke some bad feelings, said Robert Hurst, the public relations director for the Florida division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.

“There are people in this society, who, every time you mention Confederate, will complain,” Hurst said. “We know that there will be opposition and gnashing of teeth and thumping of chests when we get our tags.”

The group’s goal, he said, is to honor “our ancestors, to maintain our presence and raise some money for our division.”

Despite the controversy, Hurst said he does not believe the Sons of Confederate Veterans will have any trouble getting legislative approval.

It would be “bad faith,” he said, for the Legislature to refuse it after approving 100 other speciality plates.State Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, disagreed, saying the Legislature is “too sophisticated” to permit such a specialty tag.

“I don’t think they’d fall into the trap of passing legislation that raises the spectre of racism,” Joyner said. “It’s a very sensitive issue in this state and this country. It’s very polarizing and we don’t need that today.”

Funds for graveyards

Last month, Hillsborough County commissioners ran into criticism after issuing a proclamation recognizing the bicentennial birthday of Lee on the same day they honored a longtime a black community activist.

The license plate is not meant to polarize, said Doug Guetzloe, the head of Advantage Consultants in Winter Park who is helping usher the plate through the Legislature.

To begin with, the $25 per plate fee that would go to the Sons of Confederate Veterans would be used to maintain graveyards of men on both sides of the conflict. Another portion would go to education.

The goal is to celebrate the state’s “Confederate heritage,” not to insult people by displaying the battle flag.